Baptist Medical Center Jacksonville has received the Get With The Guidelines®-Stroke Gold-Plus Quality Achievement Award for implementing specific quality improvement measures outlined by the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association for the treatment of stroke patients.

Get With The Guidelines-Stroke helps hospital teams provide the most up-to-date, research-based guidelines with the goal of speeding recovery and reducing death and disability for stroke patients. The award is earned by meeting specific quality achievement measures for the rapid diagnosis and treatment of stroke patients at a set level for a designated period. These measures include aggressive use of medications and risk-reduction therapies aimed at reducing death and disability and improving the lives of stroke patients. Baptist Medical Center Jacksonville received the Stroke Gold Award last year as well as the Silver Plus in 2012.

“Earning the award is a team effort,” said Michael Mayo, hospital president of Baptist Medical Center Jacksonville. “We appreciate the partnership with the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association and the ability to use these guidelines to ensure the best care for our patients.”

Baptist Medical Center South also earned the Get With The Guidelines®-Stroke Silver-Plus Quality Achievement Award for implementing specific quality improvement measures outlined by the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association for the treatment of stroke patients. Baptist South also in the past received the Stroke Gold Plus award three years in a row.

“It’s always an honor to receive the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association Get With the Guidelines Stroke Award,” said Ron Robinson, hospital president at Baptist Medical Center South. “This is truly a testament to the great professionals that we have at Baptist South who provide outstanding care to our patients every day.”

Deepak L. Bhatt, M.D., M.P.H., national chairman of the Get With The Guidelines steering committee and executive director of Interventional Cardiovascular Programs at Brigham and Women's Hospital and Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School, said, “Studies have shown that hospitals that consistently follow Get With The Guidelines quality improvement measures can reduce patients’ length of stays and 30-day readmission rates and reduce disparity gaps in care.”

Nicole Thomas, vice president of Operations and Specialty Services for Baptist Health, added, “The awards are evidence of our commitment to the care of stroke patients, and we are excited to receive such an honor for the care we give to patients.”

Baptist Health also now has the new Stroke & Cerebrovascular Center at Baptist Medical Center Jacksonville, which works in coordination with Baptist’s six emergency room departments and other area hospitals.

According to the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association, stroke is the No. 4 cause of death and a leading cause of adult disability in the United States. On average, someone suffers a stroke every 40 seconds; someone dies of a stroke every four minutes; and 795,000 people suffer a new or recurrent stroke each year.

Get With The Guidelines–Stroke also helps staff implement prevention measures, which include educating stroke patients to manage their risk factors and to be aware of warning signs for stroke, and ensuring they take their medications properly.